About Swedish

SEATTLE, June 6, 2012 – Swedish’s Cherry Hill and First Hill campuses today were honored with an ‘A’ Hospital Safety Score by The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits. The Hospital Safety Score was calculated under the guidance of The Leapfrog Group’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel using publicly available data on patient injuries, medical and medication errors, and infections. Hospitals throughout the United States were assigned an A, B, C, D or F for their safety.

According to Mary Gregg, M.D., a vice president of medical affairs and the administrator who oversees quality and safety for Swedish, this award is a direct reflection of the not-for-profit health system’s two-year journey into their ‘Culture of Safety.’ This initiative includes campus safety huddles, safety pauses and Culture of Safety training, encouraging staff in all roles to speak up and advocate for patient and staff well-being. “This led to the development of ‘It Really Happens Here,’ a forum for clinicians to share their safety-related events so all staff can learn from their experiences,” said Dr. Gregg. “All Serious Safety Events (SSE) are reported on Swedish’s Intranet, which supports our commitment to transparency. Receiving this ‘A’ grade from The Leapfrog Group’s nine-member Blue Ribbon Expert Panel is an honor not shared by every Puget Sound-area hospital. Swedish received this award because of the work each and every clinician is doing every day for the highest good of the people we have the privilege to serve and heal.”

President and CEO of The Leapfrog Group Leah Binder said, “It’s our goal to give patients the information they need and deserve before even entering a hospital. We congratulate the hospitals that earned an ‘A’ and we look forward to the day when all hospitals in this country will earn the highest scores for putting patient safety first.”

To view Swedish’s scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org – the Hospital Safety Score web site – which also provides information on how the public can protect themselves and loved ones during a hospital stay.

The Leapfrog Group is a national organization using the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to initiate breakthrough improvements in the safety, quality, and affordability of health care for Americans. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey allows purchasers to structure their contracts and purchasing to reward the highest performing hospitals. The Leapfrog Group was founded in November 2000 with support from the Business Roundtable and national funders, and is now independently operated with support from its purchaser and other members. For more information, visit www.leapfroggroup.org.

About Swedish

Swedish has grown over the last 102 years to become the largest non-for-profit health provider in the Greater Seattle area with 11,000 employees, more than 2,800 physicians and 1,700 volunteers. It is comprised of five hospital campuses (First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard, Edmonds and Issaquah); ambulatory care centers in Redmond and Mill Creek; and Swedish Medical Group, a network of more than 100 primary-care and specialty clinics located throughout the Greater Puget Sound area. In addition to general medical and surgical care including robotic-assisted surgery, Swedish is known as a regional referral center, providing specialized treatment in areas such as cardiovascular care, cancer care, neuroscience, orthopedics, high-risk obstetrics, pediatric specialties, organ transplantation and clinical research. For more information, visit www.swedish.org, www.swedishcares.org, www.facebook.com/swedishmedicalcenter, or www.twitter.com/swedish.

About Providence Health & Services

Providence Health & Services is a not-for-profit Catholic health-care ministry committed to providing for the needs of the communities it serves – especially for those who are poor and vulnerable. Providence’s comprehensive scope of services includes 27 hospitals, 250 physician clinics, senior services, supportive housing and many other health and educational services. The health system spans five states – Alaska, California, Montana, Oregon and Washington – with its system office located in Renton, Wash. Providence Health & Services continues a tradition of caring that the Sisters of Providence began more than 155 years ago. Affiliating with Providence in 2012, Swedish Health Services is a private, not-for-profit organization founded in 1910 with five hospitals, more than 100 primary care and specialty clinics, two ambulatory care centers and 11,000 employees in Greater Seattle, including the Eastside, South Snohomish County and Cle Elum. In 2011, Providence and Swedish provided a combined total of more than $261 million in community benefit in Western Washington, including $73 million in free and discounted care for those who could not afford to pay for care. This is a part of the $796 million in community benefit Providence and Swedish provided to help meet the needs of the communities in Alaska, California, Montana, Oregon and Washington. For more information, visit www.providence.org.